When the economy falters, environmental issues tend to take a back seat. But looking beyond the current downturn, businesses are braced for an acceleration of the move to a carbon-constrained world. A plethora of tools is being used by governments to influence the behaviour of businesses, including regulation, voluntary agreements, advice, taxes, trading schemes and financial incentives. Increasingly, the emphasis is on putting a price on carbon and addressing market and information failures. The drive to put a price on carbon has spread far beyond Europe. Australia is currently developing an emissions trading system that is expected to start in 2010. Campaigning in the current Canadian election campaign, the Liberals have put forward plans for an environmental